Reality

The days passed and there was no sign of Stephen. To get through the loneliness engulfing her, she has to fight the unbearable fear that has always lurked at the back of her mind. It took her a long while to admit that she could no longer feel his presence. There were times she would lie awake until dawn, just listening desperately to the silence and trying to remember his face. She closed her eyes trying even harder to listen to his hearty, high-pitched laughter, and see his blushing cheeks whenever she told him how beautiful he was.

In darkness, she thought she heard Stephen’s voice, but it turned out to be her subconscious replaying old recordings out of some perverse kind of nostalgia.

She would later learn to differentiate fact from fantasy. When reality has become a tragedy.